


your heart is the only place that i call home

by tea_at_twilight_time



Category: DRRB
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Babysitting, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Non-Sexual Age Play, Other, Separation Anxiety, also @ everyone else call this a k!nkfic and i will Destroy Your Toes, babysitters!akira and mikoto, but only like. vaguely, caregiver!ayumu, hi mama i missed you a lot i hope u like this ;w;, little!seishi, trans girl!ayumu, um hey guys lmao
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 18:26:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18922594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tea_at_twilight_time/pseuds/tea_at_twilight_time
Summary: ayumu has to go on a trip for school. unfortunately, she's leaving a very sad, very anxious baby behind.thank god akira and mikoto can pull it together for a few days and be babysitters.





	your heart is the only place that i call home

**Author's Note:**

  * For [](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts).



> hiiii so. hi. i'm very nervous about posting this since this is such a small fandom lsjdflksadf but 
> 
> um!! i hope this is okay!! i wrote this for my own platonic caregiver (*waves* hi mama!!) cuz she went away for a while and i missed her a lot so. enjoy!! ;w;

"You promise to look after him while I'm gone?"

Ayumu looks at Mikoto and Akira intensely, worry shining in her eyes. Seishi's clinging to her hand pretty tightly in miserable desperation, clearly teetering between his big and little headspaces. She's supposed to be leaving today for a school trip, but since she's going to be gone for three days and she won’t have her phone, she’s well aware that Seishi is probably going to be very little and very stressed out while she’s gone. She wants to make sure he's taken care of first.

"Relax, Fujimori," Akira says, waving his hand casually. "We're gonna take care of him. He's gonna be fine. He likes us anyway, right buddy?"

He turns his last question toward Seishi, who bows his head nervously, avoiding eye contact. He nods ever so slightly, clinging somehow tighter to Ayumu's hand. He takes in a shaky breath, and Ayumu reaches forward to rub his arm.

"It's gonna be okay, Seishi-kun. It's only 'til Sunday, remember? Then I'll be back with you," she assures him softly, before turning back to the other two with a worried scowl. "You guys _have_ to take care of him. And I mean _really_ take care of him, okay? No slacking off. You guys owe me."

Mikoto winces, crossing her arms over her chest and glancing away. "Of course. We know. We'll be good to him, Fujimori. Promise."

Ayumu allows herself a tiny smile, letting herself relax a bit. She opens her mouth to say something else, only for a whimper from Seishi to cut her off.

"You really gotta go, Mama?" he asks quietly, his voice incredibly small. His bottom lip quivers, but he's doing his best to be strong and not cry.

"Yes, I'm afraid so, baby," Ayumu says sadly, her voice soft. "It's going to be okay, though, I promise! This weekend will go fast, and Itsuki-san and Tsuchiya-san will take good care of you in the meantime." She shoots them a warning glare, to be sure they understand how badly she'll mess them up if they screw this up somehow.

Akira holds his hands up placatingly. "Don't worry, don't worry. We'll take good care of the babe while you're gone. Cookies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, that's what you wanted, right?"

Ayumu rolls her eyes, again opening her mouth to speak, but once again she's interrupted by a sad little noise from Seishi.

"Maybe can come wi' you?" he asks, a tinge of hope returning to his voice at the thought.

Once again, Ayumu's voice is sad. "I'm sorry baby, but it's something you had to pre register for."

"Wasn't it a girl's only trip anyway?" Mikoto asks, before checking her watch and grimacing. "A girl's only trip you're going to be late for. We should probably get going, Fujimori, else you're gonna be left behind."

Seishi seems excited at this idea. However, Ayumu also checks the time, before gasping and nodding.

"Oh, you're right! We ought to be on our way." She turns to Seishi, smiling adoringly at him. "Can you help Mama carry her bags, little one?"

Seishi straightens up a little at that, and he even smiles a little, excited at the thought of helping his caregiver. He scoops up one of Ayumu's bags, swinging it childishly. "Mhmm! Can help, Mama," he assures her, before the four of them set out for the school's main lobby.

 

* * *

 

All of the noise and excitement being in such tight concentration makes Seishi visibly more nervous than he was before. He whines, earning a curious glance from Maiko and a gentle pat on the arm from Mikoto.

"He doesn't like the loudness," Ayumu explains quickly, shooting Seishi a gentle look. "He also doesn't like that I'm leaving him..."

"Awww," Maiko says, also shooting him a soft look. "I bet he doesn't! Nico-chan was pretty upset about me leaving, too." She reaches over and gives Seishi a pat on the arm. "It's gonna be okay, Seishi-kun. This weekend is gonna fly by, promise!"

Seishi whimpers, looking at Maiko uncertainly. It's unclear to him whether she's aware of the full extent of his problem, the full extent of his need for Ayumu to be here with him. He doesn't think Ayumu's told her about that side of their relationship, but sometimes the way she acts around him seems...suspect.

There's no time for him to think about it further, however. The lady standing at the school entrance suddenly shouts for everyone to be quiet, and for everyone going on the trip to start filing out to the bus. A lump rises in Seishi's throat, and he turns to Mama helplessly, tears stinging in the corners of his eyes.

"Plea'e don' go," he asks quietly, for one last time.

Ayumu looks at him sadly. "I'm sorry, honey," she whispers, before pulling him into a tight hug. She rocks him from side to side, rubbing his back soothingly. "I'm really, really sorry."

She holds him for what feels like both forever and no time at all. She pulls away all too soon, pressing a kiss to the corner of his mouth and smiling at him apologetically.

"I'll be back on Sunday," she says softy, giving his arm one last squeeze before turning to Akira and Mikoto. "Take good care of my baby, okay?"

Maiko tilts her head at this exchange, but no one pays her any mind. Mikoto gives Ayumu an intense nod, and Akira gently grabs onto Seishi's arm, tenderly drawing him closer.

Ayumu, seeming more assured, fixes Seishi with one last loving glance. "I'll be back soon, Seishi-kun. I love you."

Seishi swallows, now clinging tightly to Akira to keep himself up. "Lo'e you too," he mumbles softly.

Ayumu's lips twitch into a soft smile, before she grabs onto Maiko's hand. The lady in front shouts again, and she winces.

"We should go," Maiko says, and Ayumu nods. She waves one last time, before turning and following her friend to the bus.

 

* * *

 

As soon as the bus leaves, Seishi more or less collapses. Mikoto has to carry him back to his room, which isn't all that hard, since he's so skinny. Malnourished, one might even say, but it's not Mikoto's place to make such judgments.

She sets him gently down on the bed, and he immediately curls in on himself amongst the sheets. Thank god classes are over for the day, because dragging him from class to class would be hell.

Akira sits down next to him with a sigh, reaching over and giving his back a little rub.

"We should probably get him dressed in the proper baby sh—er, stuff," he says, changing his word choice at Mikoto's scowl. "Last thing we wanna do is have to change the sheets. Or put him in the bath. Or deal with his unnecessary guilt because we fell through on that front."

Mikoto sighs, nodding and running a hand through her hair. "Yeah, you're right. Okay. I'll go get the stuff, can you get him undressed?"

Akira sighs, and then grimaces. Still, he nods. "Yeah, I can do that." He starts to help Seishi into a sitting position. "C'mon, Seishi-chan. Let's get you into something more comfy, okay? Won't that be nice?"

He doesn't get a response. Seishi just continues to stare down at the bed despondently, an inconsolably sad look on his face.

Akira bites his lip, but still presses on. "Alright then. I've been told it's best to warn you first before I take anything off so you can say no if you need to, so...I'm gonna take off your jacket and sweater vest now, tell me if that's not okay, okay?"

Seishi doesn't respond, but he also doesn't fight against Akira when he removes said clothes, so he figures he's just catatonic over his caregiver being gone. Still, he continues to tell Seishi what he's removing as he does so, until he's completely naked on the bed.

"He's really out of it," Mikoto murmurs, passing a pull up over to Akira. "You-know-who says that he always puts up a fuss at first when she has to undress him..."

"Yeah, and it should be ten times worse since it's the two of us," Akira adds, sliding the garment onto the kid. "I know, Itsuki. This isn't right. This isn't _normal_. He must really be missing her."

They've both silently agreed not to mention Ayumu by name, lest they set Seishi off on accident. However, right now, that seems nigh impossible. He doesn't react at all to them dressing him in his pink onesie and white, fluffy socks, and the only time he moves at all is when Akira holds out a yellow pacifier to him, which he hesitantly leans forward for and takes into his mouth. As soon as that's done though, he collapses back against the pillows, staring dejectedly down at his lap.

"Poor baby," Akira murmurs. "Like, seriously, I can't believe I'm saying this, but poor _baby_."  

"I know..." Mikoto mumbles, and even her voice has taken on a cooing, empathetic tone. "You brought your laptop, right? Maybe we can put something on for him..." 

"That's a good idea," Akira says, dragging his laptop out of a little bag he and Mikoto had prepared beforehand. The four of them had known the moment Seishi watched Ayumu go out that door, he would drop fully and deeply into headspace, and Akira and Mikoto had figured that it'd be best if they didn't split from each other after that happened. Taking care of an upset, teen-sized baby is a big undertaking requiring two sets of hands, after all.

How Ayumu does it on her own, they don't understand. Granted, Seishi isn't always sad like this, and she's said he's a pretty sweet, easygoing kid, most of the time. But still...he's just little a baby. She probably could use more help than she admits to needing.

But that's a thought for another day. Right now, said baby has pressed himself against Akira's side while he opens up his laptop, surprising both of his babysitters.

"Oh! Hey there, little guy," Akira says, looking down at Seishi with wide-eyed surprise.

Seishi glances up at him briefly, before tucking his face into the side of his arm. He whimpers weakly, the sound filled with so much misery that it breaks the hearts of both of its witnesses.

Mikoto pauses for a moment, before taking off her jacket, tie and shoes. She climbs onto the bed with them, squishing against Seishi's other side. She places an arm over him, and he makes a soft huff of approval.

"Hey kiddo," Mikoto murmurs, making eye contact with Akira for a moment. She looks back down at the child squished between them, now looking up at her with big, sad eyes. "We know. We know you miss her. It's gonna be okay though, promise."

It's unclear whether or not Seishi actually understood the words being spoken to him, but either way, tears quickly fill his eyes. He whimpers again, turning over so that he can face Mikoto more easily.

"M...Mama..." he whimpers softly, his eyelashes fluttering and sending big, fat tears rolling down his cheeks. Talking makes his pacifier fall out, but Mikoto catches it before it can roll in between them and get crushed.

"I know, sweetie. I know," she murmurs, reaching up with her free hand to stroke his hair. Akira shifts on the other side of him, but she pays him no mind.

"Mama...co' ba'?" Seishi asks, his voice wavering slightly.

Mikoto's brow furrows in uncertainty, unable to discern what he's trying to say. She opens her mouth to ask, but thankfully, Akira speaks up.

"Of course she'll come back, little muffin top," Akira assures him gently but confidently, as if it's an obvious question that Seishi hasn't been taught the answer to yet. "That idiot loves you more than anything else in the world. I _promise_ she'll come back to you, even if she has to fight tooth and nail to get back here. Alright, little one?"

Seishi sniffles, continuing to cry quietly, but he nods. He slips his thumb into his mouth in place of the missing pacifier and mumbles around it, "Miss her..."

His crying becomes more earnest, and Mikoto and Akira share a sad look. Mikoto sighs softly and carefully pries his thumb out of his mouth, once again replacing it with the pacifier, and then wipes at his tears.

"We know, honey. This would be easier if she could have her phone, but..."

She sighs again, continuing to run her thumb over Seishi's cheeks. Akira frowns softly at them, before typing something into his laptop and presenting the screen to Seishi.

"Here, chicken noodle," he croons, drawing Seishi's eyes toward him. "How about we watch some Pokémon and relax for a while, okay? Does that sound nice?"

Seishi whimpers, but he nods, once again adjusting himself to lean against Akira. He tucks his cheek on his arm, fixing his eyes on the laptop in front of him. He looks like he's about to settle in, before he suddenly lets out a soft wail, sitting up and making grabby hands at nothing in particular.

"Huh? What—what are you—" Mikoto starts, before her eyes light up in realization. "Oh! I knew I was missing something..."

She hops out of the bed and goes back to the drawer. She digs through it for a moment, before grabbing out a pink kitty plushy and carrying it back to the bed, where Seishi's waiting with arms outstretched.

"Is this who you want? You want Kiku?" she asks, placing the stuffy in his arms.

Immediately, Seishi brings it to his chest and hugs it tightly, flopping back down on the bed and nuzzling against Akira. Mikoto smiles, taking back her spot on the bed and impulsively pressing a kiss to Seishi's temple. She earns a tiny purr from the baby in response, who looks up at her with wet, shiny eyes. Snot drips from his nose, and Mikoto grimaces, pulling a tissue box from off the bedside table.

Akira raises an eyebrow. "We ready?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'm just gonna clean up his messy little face," Mikoto says, grabbing a tissue and proceeding to do just that. "You can go ahead and start it."

Akira chuckles softly, watching with soft eyes as Mikoto scrubs lightly at the space underneath Seishi's nose. He does this for a few seconds, before turning back to the laptop and pressing play.

Once Mikoto is satisfied with the amount of snot removed from Seishi's face, she gets up and tosses the used tissues in the bathroom trash. The boys can just barely hear the sound of the water running as she washes her hands over the show. Seishi huffs, rolling over and burying his face into Akira's arm disinterestedly. He seems exhausted, honestly.

Mikoto returns and once again takes her place, cuddled up against Seishi's side. Both of them know that there'll probably be more tears later, that Seishi's only placated for the moment because he's sleepy and they're holding him so closely. For now, though, they be can content that he's able to let them soothe him, if only for a little bit.

It's going to be a hard three days, for sure. But maybe they can make it work.

**Author's Note:**

> i might continue this if i don't like. y'know. get kicked out of the fandom hfjlasdflasjd 
> 
> title is from heartlines by florence + the machine!! ;w;


End file.
